Halo: Operation Red Flag
by Apex113
Summary: A butterfly flaps its wings in China, and a hurricane hits New Mexico. Small changes in the past, can produce massive divergences in the present. Planet Reach for now, is spared. The UNSC strikes back. Operation Red Flag goes forth. The die is cast. The wings flapped. And nothing is ever again, the same.
1. Chapter I: Operation Red Flag

**SUMMARY**

A butterfly flaps its wings in China, and a hurricane hits New Mexico. Small changes in the past, can produce massive divergences in the present. Planet Reach, for now, is spared. Humanity strikes back. The Covenant are going to rue the day they started this Great War, 27 years ago. It's time for change, it's time for Red Flag.

* * *

**DISCLAIMER**

→ This author does not own the Halo franchisee. It is the property of 343 Industries.

→ This story is meant purely as a work of art. Any resemblance to a person, alive or dead, is purely coincidental and unintentional.

→ This author makes no profit from the publishing of this story on this site.

→ _Yes_, this has been inspired by **Havoc-Legionnaire**'s _Halo: The Art of War_; _but_ while the beginning is similar - Operation Red Flag _is_ canon after all; it just wasn't carried out - the end is _not_. I have plans, oh so many, many plans. *Cackles*

→ No, there is _no_ Spearhead SPARTAN III team in this story. This is going to be a bit more realistic, although a bit less funny. Spearhead team, while they take away the realism, they do make me laugh.

→ **Havoc-Legionnaire** made one prominent mistake in _Halo: The Art of War_ and that was the presence of SPARTAN IVs. This is because the first class of SPARTAN IVs (145 SPARTANs) went active on January 7th, _**2553**_, while _Art of War_ took place in _**2552**_.

* * *

**_"There is an ancient saying: 'The beginning of wisdom is ignorance.' So where do we begin to create the ultimate warrior?  
_****_With innocence."_**

— Doctor Catherine Halsey, before kick-starting the Orion Project, Generation II; renamed the SPARTAN II Project —

* * *

**CHAPTER I: Operation Red Flag**

**_0700 Hours; 27th August, 2552 - UNSCDF Military Calendar; CASTLE Base; Highly Secure Briefing Room/Amphitheatre; Planet Reach; Epsilon Eridani Star System..._**

This was only the third time John had set foot in this highly secure briefing room cum amphitheatre, ensconced within a bunker buried deep within the crust of the planet Reach; Humanity's military fortress, orbiting Epsilon Eridani; the last star before Sol itself. Buried beneath 300 metres of steel and concrete, this room, part of the Reach FLEETCOM Military Complex in the Highland Mountains, was capable of surviving an 80 megaton nuclear blast.

The first time he had been here, had been just after he had been kidnapped by ONI agents as a child, and the second time was just before he was sent into battle for the first time against an Insurrectionist cell within the asteroid belt of the Eridanus system. He had been awarded the Purple Heart for that, after being shot in the side.

Within the room, were a dozen other people like him; people he had not spoken to for decades of constant battle. Fred, Linda, Kelly, James...all the chairs in the briefing room were full bar seven. Three men and one woman who would have occupied those chairs were listed 'Missing In Action' by the Office of Naval Intelligence, but John knew better.

They were dead; killed by the Covenant, the unstoppable religious conglomeration of eight alien races that had, but one goal: the extermination of Humanity. On February 11th, 2525 Humans made First Contact. Unfortunately, this Contact began the most devastating war yet, and was heralded by thirteen words;_ 'Your destruction is the will of the Gods...and we are their instrument.'_

The juggernaut that was this Covenant swept across human worlds like a plague, sweeping aside the human 'heretics' with superior firepower and technology. It was a plague yet to be stopped.

Since the Harvest Campaigns; the five year war for control of the world over which Contact was made - Harvest - John had engaged Covenant ground forces in battle. He hadn't set foot here in twenty seven years. It made him nostalgic for better times.

He snapped to attention along with the rest of his brethren - SPARTAN II supersoldiers - as their 'creator' Doctor Catherine Halsey walked into the room accompanied by a Colonel from ONI of East Asian descent.

Halsey walked up to the podium. She did not smile. Nowadays, there was precious little to smile about.

"At ease."

She took a breath as the lights dimmed slightly. "Assembled here tonight are all surviving SPARTANs save three, who are otherwise engaged on fields of combat too distant to be easily recalled. In the last decade of combat there have only been three KIAs and one SPARTAN too wounded to continue active duty. You are to be commended for having the best operational record of any unit in the fleet."

Now she smiled. "It is very good to see you all again. Let us begin. I have with me here Colonel George Yang, the Director of ONI Section III. He will be briefing you all for a future mission code-named Operation Red Flag. To put it simply; it is our first proper counterattack in this war. Colonel, if you please."

She stepped back, and Colonel Yang stepped forward. "I know you all are likely wondering why R&amp;D is getting involved, so I'll tell you why. This entire mission, will be carried out with new, cutting-edge and experimental technology that ONI Section III has been working on, non-stop, for the past three decades."

John frowned. He wasn't very happy about the experimental part. If his fancy new death-ray gun suddenly broke down in the middle of killing Elites, well, Yang would find his yang getting yanked. Hard.

The lights dimmed even further, and a holo-projector booted up, illuminating the room. In front of them, in the form of a hologram, floated an unfamiliar, ugly looking alien, with an emphasis on the ugly. Its skin was wrinkled, and it looked frail, its bones atrophied. The slightest force, even that of gravity, would probably cause them to snap. It wore robes and ornaments that looked suspiciously Covenant in design.

"This, is a San'Shyuum. We've nicknamed it - 'Prophet'. They're the ruling caste of the entire Covenant. They are the ones who've started this war, ladies and gentlemen, and they are the only ones who can end it. The rest of the Covenant species consider them to be holy; to be the instruments of the Gods."

Muttering filled the room, although it quickly died away. No one had missed the reference to the First Contact message.

Yang nodded grimly. "I see you've made the connection. There are three Prophets that rise above the rest, forming the Covenant Hegemony's High Council; the Prophets of Regret, Truth, and Mercy. We're calling them the High Prophets. Operation Red Flag is a plan with a simple end goal; capture one of these three Prophets, _alive_."

John hesitated before raising his hand.

"_Alive_ sir? Wouldn't it be more advantageous to simply eliminate their leadership?"

"Yes Master Chief, _alive_. While the thought of eliminating their leadership is highly tempting, it would, in the end, cause the Covenant's armies to fight even harder for 'rightful vengeance' and you know as well as I, we do not have the means yet to win this war by military might. Hence, we plan on capturing one of these San'Shyuum in the hopes of negotiating an end to this war. Broker a truce. Contrary to Section II's claims, Humanity is on the ropes, and about to go down for the count. A majority of the Outer Colonies are gone, the Middle Colonies are in flames and a few Inner Colonies have already been struck. Operation Red Flag aims to change that. There are more things than just winning or losing Master Chief. This our last chance to end this war on our terms. Afterwards, we rebuild, recover, then strike back. Already, many game-changing technologies are in the pipeline. We merely need time. Time that we are buying with Operation Red Flag. Remember that."

John nodded, suitably chastised. He remembered something Dr. Halsey had told him before his first war game back at CASTLE base._ If you can't win the game, then simply pull out of the game._

Fred-104 raised his hand this time. "Is that our only objective, sir? Capturing a Prophet?"

Yang inclined his head. "That was very astute of you Sierra-104. The answer is no. It is not. They shall be elucidated to you later."

"Now, Operation Red Flag is a four phased Op that has been years in the making.

PHASE ONE is the disabling of a Class V Covenant vessel; that is, a CAS-class Assault Carrier, or a CSO-class Supercarrier by a specially modified UNSC Naval Vessel.

PHASE TWO is the boarding of the disabled vessel by SPARTAN forces accompanied by Orbital Drop Shock Troopers, who will neutralize all onboard defences, take command of the ship, crack the navigation database and decipher the location of the Covenant Homeworld.

In PHASE THREE, you will travel to the Covenant Homeworld and infiltrate it.

In PHASE FOUR, you will complete your given objectives, namely the capture of a High Prophet, and then exfiltrate safely back to UNSC controlled space.

I know it is a lot to ask of you, and none of you may survive this. That is why, Operation Red Flag has been declared a volunteer-only mission by High Command. Those that wish to volunteer, please stand up."

With a scraping of chairs, every single person in the room stood up.

Halsey beamed. "Excellent. Due to the sensitive nature of this operation, HIGHCOMM has deemed it necessary to utilise all available SPARTAN forces. I would like to introduce you all to SPARTAN B-312 of SPARTAN III Beta Company, who shall be commanding all SPARTAN III forces."

Halsey raised her hand to stall any questions. "The SPARTAN III project was initiated by Colonel James Ackerson. All other details shall be provided by B-312. Moving on, he is the only SPARTAN other than SPARTAN-117 to possess a 'hyper-lethal' rating."

John raised an eyebrow in sudden interest at _that_ news.

Halsey started to speak further, but was interrupted by Colonel Yang. "As much as you all may wish to 'catch up', so to speak, time is wasting."

Halsey shot Yang a look that let everyone know how unhappy she was with him, but stepped away.

The colonel stepped up to the podium again. "Before we finish today I have one other small bit of business. Please come to attention. From Fleet Admiral Hood, in recognition of Master Chief Petty Officer Sierra-117's outstanding work -" John's eyes widened in shock, "- in the defence of Earth and her colonies, I hereby authorise his immediate promotion to the rank of Commander Master Chief Petty Officer. Commander, step forward."

John hesitated almost disbelievingly, before stepping forward, walking down the aisle as the rest of the SPARTAN IIs clapped. Even the ever stoic Linda was smiling and clapping. He couldn't remember the last time she smiled.

As Doctor Halsey pinned the oak leaf clasps onto his tunic, he remembered what she had said the first time he had set foot in this room. _You have been called upon to serve. You will be trained - and you will become the best we can make of you. You will be the protectors of Earth and all her colonies._

The training was brutal, and he wouldn't wish it upon anyone else. He remembered snippets of his life before he was kidnapped, and while he missed his parents and Parissa, he recognized the necessity of the SPARTANs, and wouldn't have it any other way.

* * *

**_One Week Earlier…_**

**_Covenant Home Station; 'The Holy City' - High Charity; The 'Far Tower'; Sanctum of the Hierarchs; Ninth Age of Reclamation…_**

The war was progressing well, albeit slowly. The rightful warriors of the Holy Covenant advanced upon the worlds infested by the heretical human parasites, cleansing them with righteous fury even as he observed the duel between the Jiralhanae Chieftain Tartarus, and the Sangheili Arbiter Thel 'Vadamee, organized for his amusement. To him, however, it was a mere distraction, a way to pass the time while he waited for the results of his little experiment.

During the battle for the planet the humans called Sigma Octanus IV, he had had deployed a highly experimental probe. This probe, no bigger than a Jiralhanae's head, would latch onto a human ship, and record its journey through slipstream space before recording the image of the stars around the planet for reference to star maps left behind by the Gods.

After it had what it needed, the probe would detach itself from the ship before entering slipstream space. If everything went forth as it should, the probe would return to High Charity. The probe was due back today. Hopefully, the location of a major human world - perhaps even their origin world! - would be revealed. It would greatly accelerate the extermination of the heretic pestilence.

As the Arbiter brought his plasma sword straight down on Tartarus' head, only to be blocked by the Chieftain's gravity hammer, the alert came. He quickly swiped through holograms until he came upon the message.

_"The data is incomplete. The star field around the planet is unidentifiable. All that is possible to retrieve further data has been attempted. Simulations have shown this delay to be acceptable to the war effort. This project was not a total failure. A major flaw has been revealed in the probe's design. Once it has been corrected, a process the Huragok inform me requires the probe to be redesigned, we shall be able to try again in approximately one and a half solar cycles of Janjur Qu'om."_

That was a pity. Nevertheless, one and a half cycles of Janjur Qu'om around its sun was not a long time in the grand scheme of the Forerunners. The humans would not last another decade even without the probe's data.

He dismissed the message, his mood more cheerful than before, despite the failure of the probe.

_Soon, the humans shall be no more, and this faithful Covenant with me at its helm, shall be set upon the Great Journey; following in the footsteps of the Gods._

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

→ As you can see, I've fallen into a Halo – Mass Effect – Babylon 5 craze triangle.

→ No, I don't know when I'll get out of it.

→ Yes, I still plan on continuing _The_ _Lord_ _and_ _his_ _Lady_.

→ No, I don't know when the next update for _The_ _Lord_ _and_ _his_ _Lady_ will be posted.

→ Obviously, when I feel like writing it.

→ Right now, I feel like writing _Operation_ _Red_ _Flag_.

→ Deal with it.

→ Boohoohoo.

→ I don't give a damn how sad you are.

→ OK, I do.

→ But seriously, don't pester me.

→ Please.

→ I'm begging you.

→ Chapters will increase in length as the story progresses.

→ Chapter 2 of _Operation_ _Red_ _Flag_ should be up soon.

→ C u l8r.

* * *

_**Signing off for now,**_

_**~ Apex113**_

* * *

**DATE COMPLETED: **02/04/2015

**DATE REVISED: **03/04/2015

**TIME COMPLETED: **13:43:51

**TIME REVISED: **13:31:22

**WORD COUNT: **2531 words


	2. Chapter II: Last, best hope for Peace

**SUMMARY**

A butterfly flaps its wings in China, and a hurricane hits New Mexico. Small changes in the past, can produce massive divergences in the present. Planet Reach, for now, is spared. Humanity strikes back. The Covenant are going to rue the day they started this Great War, 27 years ago. It's time for change, it's time for Red Flag.

* * *

**DISCLAIMER**

→ This author does not own the Halo franchisee. It is the property of 343 Industries.

→ This story is meant purely as a work of art. Any resemblance to a person, alive or dead, is purely coincidental and unintentional.

→ This author makes no profit from the publishing of this story on this site.

→ Yes, this has been inspired by **Havoc-Legionnaire**'s_ Halo: The Art of War_; but while the beginning is similar - Operation Red Flag _is_ canon after all; it just wasn't carried out - the end is not. I have plans, oh so many, many plans. *Cackles*

→ No, there is no Spearhead SPARTAN III team in this story. This is going to be a bit more realistic, although a bit less funny. Spearhead team, while they take away the realism, they do make me laugh.

→ Havoc-Legionnaire made one prominent mistake in _Halo: The Art of War_ and that was the presence of SPARTAN IVs. This is because the first class of SPARTAN IVs (145 SPARTANs) went active on January 7th, _2553_, while _Art of War_ took place in _2552_.

* * *

**_"Men like him will save us, you know. We more like Keyes."_**

– Admiral Preston J Cole –

* * *

**CHAPTER II: Last, best hope for Peace...**

_**0300 Hours; 17th July, 2552 - UNSCDF Military Calendar; Onboard Halberd-class destroyer UNSC Iroquois under Commander Jacob Keyes; High Orbit; Planet Sigma Octanus IV; Sigma Octanus Star System...**_

"Exiting Slipspace. Arriving at Sigma Octanus IV Commander," said Lieutenant Jaggers; the Navigation Officer serving aboard the Iroquois. Commander Jacob Keyes, the ship's Commanding Officer looked up from his TacPad. His eyes were bloodshot, and Keyes was willing to swear under oath that his breath smelt like alcohol. Unfortunately, this wouldn't be the first time that he had been tested, and Keyes would bet his pension, that somehow, like all times prior, it would come up negative. He didn't know how the little arsehole did it, but he endeavoured to find out.

Lieutenant Jaggers wasn't well liked by the crew of the Iroquois. He was moody, temperamental, insubordinate, and generally bad at his job. Keyes had lost count of the number of times he had petitioned Admiral Stanforth for him to be transferred, but had been denied due to a general lack of manpower.

"We're being hailed sir," called out Lieutenant Dominique, the Communications Officer. "It's from the Remote Scanning Outpost Archimedes. Audio-Visual Input."

"On-screen."

"On-screen aye sir. Three seconds till two-way….alright. You're on."

A man appeared on the Iroquois' holographic display wearing the insignia of an Ensign. He had a narrow face, and looked to be in his thirties. Surprising that he was still merely an Ensign. Must be a conscript from one of the destroyed Outer Colonies.

The man saluted. "Ensign Lovell reporting sir."

Ah. Keyes had heard of him. He had an impressive Career Service Vitae (CSV) and had graduated from the prestigious Officer Candidate School on Luna with top honours, and was promoted to Lieutenant within three years, being awarded a Silver Star, three Bronze Stars and two Purple Hearts. He had later been demoted back to Ensign after an unfortunate incident involving Vice Admiral Gerov's daughter. On top of four reports of insubordination, it was inevitable that he end up commanding an outpost in the middle of nowhere, although Keyes recalled that Lovell had been awarded a promotion and a way out half a year ago, but had refused, taking responsibility for his actions; believing that he had cracked under pressure. Keyes respected that. He would talk to Stanforth about getting Lovell transferred to the Iroquois as a replacement for Jaggers.

"Anything to report Ensign?"

"Negative sir. Scans are clear, we're green across the board, although there's an anomaly in the slipstream that's too large to be a ship; probably an asteroid that will pass this system within twenty minutes. No idea how they get in there in the first place. Sending sensor data now sir."

**_0302 Hours, 17th July 2552..._**

"Thank you Ensign, that will be all."

"Sir."

The screen went blank. Keyes turned to his Second in Command and Weapon's Officer.

"Lieutenant Hikowa."

"Yes sir?"

"Your ship."

"My ship, aye sir," she confirmed.

"I'll be in my quarters. Call me if you need me."

_**0303 Hours, 17th July 2552...**_

She saluted as he stood from his chair before turning away, already handing out a fresh set of orders with a clipped efficiency that made even him envious. He walked off the bridge, the chatter fading away. He acknowledged the salutes, his subordinates gave him as he made his way to, and entered his quarters.

**_0307 Hours, 17th July 2552..._**

He sat down at his desk - mahogany, 24th century - and started up his TacPad and continued reading what he had been perusing before Jaggers interrupted him. It was a journal Catherine had recommended he read. It was an Astrophysics Journal written by a Lieutenant-Commander Fhajad, someone who, according to Halsey was a failed SPARTAN-II candidate. Most of the science equations and diagrams went over his head, but it was an interesting read nonetheless.

He finished the entry he had been forced to leave incomplete, before loading the next one.

**UNITED NATIONS SPACE COMMAND ASTROPHYSICS JOURNAL 034-23-01**

**DATE:** May 11th, 2540 (UNSCDF Military Calendar)

**ENCRYPTION CODE:** None

**PUBLIC KEY: **NA

**AUTHOR(S):** Lieutenant Commander Fhajad-084 (Service number [CLASSIFIED]), UNSC Office of Naval Intelligence.

**SUBJECT: **Dimensional-Mass Space Compressions in Shaw-Fujikawa (a.k.a. "Slipstream") Space.

**CLASSIFICATION:** NA

_/start file/_

**ABSTRACT:** The space-bending properties of [baryonic] mass in normal space are well described by Einstein's [theory of] general relativity. Such distortions, however, are complicated by the anomalous quantum gravitational effects [present] in Shaw-Fujikawa (SF) spaces. Using [a] loop-string analysis, it can be shown that a large mass bends space in SF space more than general relativity predicts by an order of magnitude. This bending may explain how several objects clustered closely together in SF space have been reported erroneously as a single larger mass...

_/file continued below/_

_/Press **ENTER** to continue/_

_**0313 Hours, 17th July 2552...**_

Keyes raised a finger to tap the **ENTER** key, then froze in shocked realization. "Son of a bitch," he swore. The chair he had been sitting on overturned with a crash as he burst out of his quarters, running like a man possessed, past startled ensigns and technicians, towards the bridge. He burst in, startling Lt. Hikowa who jumped, a mug of pencils clattering to the floor where it shattered.

"Sir, I didn't-"

"Sound General Quarters, get this ship ready for battle within the next minute and get me Admiral Stanforth immediately. This is not a drill," he ordered, ignoring her completely.

He scowled impatiently when they stared at him uncomprehendingly. "_NOW_!"

"Aye sir!"

The bright white lights which lit up the ship's interior dimmed to a pale yellow, as alarms began to ring overhead, and the PA system came online.

_General Quarters, General Quarters. All hands, General Quarters. Man your battlestations. This is not a drill. I repeat, this is NOT a drill._

The ship burst into a flurry of action as damage control teams gathered their equipment and stood ready at their stations, marines dressed up in their combat gear, and technicians tapped frantically at their consoles, running diagnostics, and ensuring that the destroyer was ready to blow up anything that challenged it.

_**0316 Hours, 17th July 2552...**_

"Admiral Stanforth is online sir."

The screen came online showing the bridge of Stanforth's flagship; the Marathon-class heavy cruiser the UNSC Leviathan.

"What's with the sudden phone call Jacob? I got a-"

"We got Covenant ships inbound to Sigma IV sir. I estimate four Covvie frigates. Estimated Arrival Time" -he consulted his chronometer- "three and a half minutes. Request reinforcements," interrupted Keyes. Had it been any other time, he would be arrested, pending court martial for insubordination.

Stanforth barked some orders to an aide, who saluted and ran towards a communications officer, before turning back towards Keyes, his previously jovial expression replaced with one of calm concern.

"How good is your info?"

"Ensign Lovell at RCS Archimedes reported a large mass moving through slipspace. He tagged it as an asteroid, because it is bigger than any known Covenant ship. I was reading the UNSC Astrophysics Journal Serial Number 034-23-01 by a Lieutenant Commander Fhajad. He reported that, experimentally, they had found that multiple ships flying close together in slipspace, appear as one large mass. Sensor readings transmitted by Lovell match-"

"-the ones reported by Fhajad," completed Stanforth grimly.

"Yes sir. Covvie ships ETA two minutes sir. We'll hold 'em off until reinforcements arrive."

"Pull back if it gets too hot Commander. That is an order."

"Understood," replied Keyes with absolutely no intention of following that order. He wasn't one to flee while thousands died.

_**0319 Hours, 17th July 2552...**_

"UNSC Gettysburg and UNSC Allegiance are on the way. ETA one hour. The Leviathan and her battle group will be there half an hour later. Stay alive. And Keyes? Good luck."

The screen went blank.

"Alright people. The data shows the Covvies will drop out next to Sigma IV's moon. Orient us in that direction."

The destroyer's massive engines flared, as they adjusted its heading, struggling as they tried to turn a multi-million ton warship on a dime.

"Reactor and thruster flux within acceptable parameters."

"Presumed Covenant fleet thirty seconds out."

"Alright people. This is it. There are fifty thousand people on the planet below us, and it is our duty to protect them. For Earth and all her colonies."

"For Earth!"

"ETA ten seconds."

"MAC one at quarter charge. MAC two ten percent. CIWS armed and ready. Archers armed and ready."

"Ready a Shiva. As a precaution, prepare to wipe our database and if necessary self-destruct, in accordance with the Cole Protocol."

"Done sir."

_**0320 Hours, 17th July 2552...**_

"Covvies ahoy! In three...two...one…"

Nothing happened.

"Where are th-"

With a flare of blue four Covenant ships transitioned into normal space.

"Never mind," muttered the Operations Officer Lt. Hall.

"Commander, we have a problem."

Keyes groaned from his chair. "We always do."

"We've got two frigates, one destroyer, and one DDS-class carrier. We're out-numbered and out-gunned. Orders?"

"We attack."

"That's crazy!" blurted Lt. Jaggers.

Keyes glared daggers at the Lieutenant. He didn't have time for this crap. "You are out of line Lieu-"

"I am not doing this!" Jaggers stood from his console, swaying slightly.

The Covenant fleet began advancing towards them.

"Forty seconds to weapons range," called out Hikowa.

"There are fifty thousand innocent civilians down there. You will man your station or-"

"I will not!"

They glared daggers at each other as the bridge crew looked on wide-eyed.

"Then you are relieved," said Keyes quietly. "Security, get this man off my bridge and send for a replacement."

"You can't do this!"

"Throw him in the brig."

"You will regret this! I will destroy you! You-"

Ensign Thomas, a hulking six foot monster of a man thumped Jaggers at the base of his neck. He immediately went limp.

Keyes nodded in satisfaction and turned back towards the three dimensional holographic display screen where the Covenant ships were depicted by glowing red triangles.

"Time to weapons range LT?"

"Twenty seconds."

"Launch a Shiva. Set it to remote detonation. Coordinates: negative fifty through negative thirty one on the X-axis; positive one fifty through positive one fifty five on the Y-axis; and negative five through negative eleven point three on the Z-axis."

"But sir, that's the opposite direction!"

"I know."

She stared at him, before nodding and turning back to her console. "Yes sir. Shiva away."

"Ten seconds."

"MACs one and two fully charged."

"Set a collision course for the destroyer. Emergency acceleration. Trust me."

"Aye sir, always."

Lieutenant Waltz of the relief crew entered the bridge, saluted and sat down at Jaggers' console.

"Frigates have launched one plasma torpedo each. Taking evasi-"

"No." Keyes' voice cut through the battle chatter like a knife through butter.

"Maintain course. Ready all starboard emergency thrusters."

"Ready."

"Prepare all topside Archer missile pods."

"Prepared."

"Torpedoes incoming. Fifteen seconds."

"Fire emergency thrusters at my command."

"Ten seconds."

The torpedoes closed in.

"Seven seconds."

"Wait for it...wait for it..._NOW_."

The emergency thrusters fired when the torpedoes were only meters away, throwing the ship hard to port. The crew was jolted terribly, but the deed was done and the torpedoes missed, flying away at full speed into the void, before beginning to slow and turn.

"Maintain collision course. Slave thruster controls to my console. Tell damage control to be ready."

They carried out their orders with a quiet, calm efficiency, not speaking more than necessary and giving to-the-point reports.

The collision alert sounded.

The Iroquois continued its suicide run on the destroyer. Its crew was beginning to turn the massive purple ship away, but there was no way they'd be successful. They were moving too fast, and the destroyer was too heavy.

The plasma torpedoes closed in on the Iroquois. At their current heading, they would hit the engines and then the reactor, immolating the ship and its crew.

When they were only a few dozen metres away from crashing into the destroyer's shields, Keyes fired the appropriate thrusters.

The Iroquois began to climb steeply, the G-forces from the sudden course change flattening the crew in their seats, but its bottom still grazed the destroyer's shields.

The crew was jolted in their seats as alarms went off all over the bridge.

But they were no longer on a collision course, and the plasma torpedoes, for all their destructive power were unable to turn in time, and with the Iroquois out of the way, they instead slammed into the Covenant destroyer one after another, breaching both its weakened shields and hull.

"Their shields are..._gone_, sir."

There was an undercurrent of disbelief among the bridge crew, while Keyes smirked.

"Lieutenant Hikowa, fire a spread of Archers if you please. Take them out."

"Gladly sir."

Archer missiles burst out of their missile pods by the dozens; a full three-quarters of the Iroquois' load out arcing towards the Covenant ship, each warhead possessing a twenty kiloton payload. At point black range, the Covenant was able to shoot down only a couple of them before they impacted, sending the destroyer and its crew to a fiery grave.

"Set a course for orbital slingshot around Sigma Octanus IV."

The bridge crew exchanged puzzled looks, but after that display of tactical skill, they decided not to interfere in whatever scheme Keyes had cooked up now.

"Course set."

"The Covvies are trying to meet us head-on on the other side of the planet."

"All ahead full speed. Run engines at 110%."

"Engines are already at 120%. Massive overheating, possible catastrophic failure imminent."

"Run them harder. One last four second burst."

The Iroquois' engines flared blue-white, the engine cowls glowing red-hot as they accelerated the destroyer beyond what was considered safe.

"Structural integrity at sixty seven percent and decreasing. We lost quite a bit of armour on the Covvie's shields."

"Proceed with emergency shut-down of engines."

Then a fast moving blur passed the Iroquois.

With its thrusters inactive, and the black, sensor deflecting stealth coating covering its length and breadth, there was no way to detect it.

"That was the Shiva!" exclaimed Hikowa. "How? We just-"

"Planetary slingshot," grinned Keyes. "Elementary UNSC Naval Doctrine."

"We'll be staring the Covvies in the face in fifty seconds," called out Waltz.

"But the Shiva will reach there in forty," countered Keyes.

They waited.

Thirty...twenty...ten...

"Shiva has reached."

"Detonate."

The bridge lights flickered while consoles sparked.

"Detonation confirmed. Reading high amounts of alpha emissions. Some electronic interference. We're still at combat efficiency."

"Covvie frigates dead ahead. Their shields are partially drained."

"Excellent. Acquire independent targeting solution for both MACs."

"Acquired."

"Fire."

The ship shuddered as one MAC fired, followed by the other; the massive rounds smashing through what remained of the shields, before coring both frigates from bow to stern. They exploded into millions of fragments of purple alloy that glinted in the light of the distant star.

The crew cheered.

"Status of the DDS-carrier?"

"It is located to our port side, between us and the planet. It's launching dropships."

"Twenty seconds to weapons range."

"Energy spike! It's retreating. Slipspace engines charging….charged! They're gone sir."

"Secure from action stations but stay frosty. They could be back."

"Yes sir."

_**0330 Hours, 17th July 2552...**_

"Give the order for our ground forces to deploy groundside immediately."

"Already done sir. SPARTANs are deploying now. Led by MCPO Sierra-117"

Keyes nodded. Typical Hikowan efficiency.

"Give it to me straight. How many did we lose?"

"36 dead and 124 wounded sir. Two are missing, MedBay suspects they got spaced. And the Covvies got boots on the ground."

Keyes sighed.

"Stop blaming yourself," she scolded. "If not for you, many more would be dead. We'd all be dead. Honestly sir, that was the most brilliant maneuver I've ever seen."

_**0500 Hours, 17th July 2552...**_

"That was the most brilliant maneuver ever! I'd pay good money to get a picture of the Covvies' faces when you did that," Stanforth cackled, as Keyes finished making his report. "You did good Keyes, real good. Not many people could have done what you did."

"Thank you sir."

"Which is why I'm promoting you. Congratulations Captain."

"I'm honoured sir."

"Damn right you are. Now get your ship to the Cradle for field repairs, then join us in formation. We've detected Covenant scum on the way. ETA one hour to the edge of the system. Looks like they're coming in on sublight so it'll take a few more hours for them to reach us. They're handing us the time we need. Let's not waste it."

"We'll be ready sir." Keyes saluted, before he turned on his heel, conducting an about-face that would make a SPARTAN proud. He started to leave before he paused.

"Sir, I assume you read my report on Lieutenant Jaggers?'

Stanforth nodded. "When this is done and over, he's headed for Reach for a court-martial."

"Yes sir, about that. I find myself short of a Navigation Officer. I'd like it if Ensign Lovell were to relieve Lieutenant Jaggers of duty. Lieutenant Jaggers risked the life of everyone on my ship and the planet with his insubordination. He doesn't belong on a warship, he belongs on a deep space sensor outpost where he can't bother anyone! The man is an alcoholic, insubordinate, I could go on all day long!"

Stanforth nodded. "You've said as much before, although much less….uh, shall we say, vehemently."

Keyes flushed. "I'm sorry sir. It's just that he gets on my nerves. I hate cowards."

Stanforth snorted. "Don't we all. I'll arrange for Ensign Lovell to be reassigned Captain. Now get your butt to your ship."

Keyes saluted again before walking off towards the Leviathan's hangar bay to hitch a ride on a Pelican dropship.

Stanforth chuckled gleefully. "That man-" He trailed off.

"He's really something."

* * *

_**0625 Hours, 17th July 2552…**_

"Covenant forces detected Admiral. As expected, they're appearing on the edge of the system, and coming in by sublight. They'll reach us by 2130 Hours."

Forty seven proud warships hung in the darkness of space awaiting the chance to give battle. Then a forty eighth ship joined them; the destroyer Iroquois, its sides battered, its engines struggling, but its weapons and crew at full capacity.

"We're in position Captain," reported Ensign Lovell; the newly appointed Navigation Officer.

"Very good. Lieutenant Hikowa, status report," ordered Keyes.

"Well, the Cradle replaced the two meters of armour we scraped off on the Covvie's shields; they had to replace quite a few electronic components; five superconducting magnets for the MACs, that were damaged; a full engine overhaul; and a replenishment of our Archer missile stocks. We also have two Shivas remaining."

Keyes grinned. "Lash offered to repaint our war stripes." Referring to the non-regulation red stripes painted along the length of the Iroquois on both sides that had been damaged during battle, and the CO of the UNSC Cradle.

Hikowa smiled. "What did you say?"

"I refused obviously. Chicks dig scars, and this baby has plenty of 'em. Be good for her to show them off."

Hikowa rolled her eyes, turning back to the display screen. "Men."

Then she paused. "Wait. Her? You're telling me this ship's a lesbian?"

Keyes shrugged.

_**2120 Hours, 17th July 2552...**_

"We're being hailed by Admiral Stanforth."

"Accept the hail."

"They're on the way Captain. Stand ready. We're clustering together in 'Checkerboard' formation so we can concentrate MAC fire effectively. I plan on getting the first shots in."

"That restricts our mobility. We'll be sitting ducks for their plasma torpedoes," noted Keyes.

Stanforth rubbed his eyes wearily. "We've got that covered. Whatever happens Captain, maintain formation unless told otherwise."

Keyes didn't like the expression on Stanforth's face, but nodded.

They fell into formation, and cut engines, their retro thrusters firing furiously to stop them drifting forwards and bring them to a halt. "Sound General quarters."

As the familiar wail resounded through every ship throughout the fleet, technicians ran diagnostics, damage control parties hung at their consoles, and weapons officers adjusted their aim.

"Covenant fleet ahead. 24 vessels. Receiving targeting solution from the Leviathan. They're telling us to divert reactor power from engines to recharging the MACs after we fire."

"Acknowledge them. Status of MACs?"

"Full charge. CIWS ready, as are Archers and Shivas. We're at 90% combat efficiency. Our rear bottom decks are still open to vacuum."

"Irrelevant," dismissed Keyes.

"Covenant ships in range."

Admiral Stanforth came on the fleet address system. "All ships, open fire. Full alpha strike."

Forty eight ships fired their all their MACs in unison and ninety three 600 ton slugs travelled through space, before slamming into the Covenant ships. Their shields flared and nine ships fell out of formation, their hulls breached. Three exploded outright, while the rest lost power.

The crew of the Iroquois cheered. "MACs at five percent and charging."

"Covenant ships are firing. Reading sixty nine plasma torpedoes. Maintaining course."

The torpedoes came closer. "Are we just going to let them hit?"

"No," said Keyes quietly. "They are."

The massive form of the Cradle drifted in front of the UNSC fleet and intercepted the torpedoes with its hull which slammed into it, one after another, reducing it to a burnt out husk that began drifting lifelessly.

"MACs at fifty one percent charge. No lifeboats launched. Crew of thirty presumed KIA."

Keyes nodded somberly.

As soon as the station's hull had drifted past the firing lines, Admiral Stanforth came on the comms again. "All ships reopen fire. Alpha strike. Then break and attack."

"MACs at ninety five percent."

"That will do. Fire."

The fleet fired again, the MAC guns spitting out 600 tons worth of metal in a massive explosion of energy. They hurtled across the void, and slammed into Covenant ships. With their shields weakened, or destroyed by the previous volley, they didn't have a chance. Ships fell out of formation before exploding, their reactors breached. Some of them suffered severe hull breaches, and began drifting unpowered, their crews doomed. Seven ships were destroyed.

At the end of the two massive alpha strikes, only eight ships remained. One DDS-class carrier, two damaged DAV-class light corvettes, and two RPV-class light destroyers, and three CPV-class heavy destroyers.

The UNSC fleet broke apart, splitting into groups of threes and fours and pressing the attack.

0230 Hours, 18th July, 2552 - UNSCDF Military Calendar; Onboard Halberd-class destroyer UNSC Iroquois under Captain Jacob Keyes; High Orbit; Third Lagrange Point; Planet Sigma Octanus IV; Sigma Octanus Star System...

The Iroquois shuddered as a plasma torpedo grazed its rear, taking half a metre of Titanium-A alloy with it. With its structural integrity compromised, it took only the electromagnetic pulse of a single Archer missile, to wipe out the torpedo.

"Structural Integrity at sixty percent," called out Hall.

"Covenant ship ahead. RPV-class. Firing MACs," said Hikowa. The ship shuddered as its dual Mark II - Medium Coil MACs fired one after another. The Covenant destroyer shuddered, but its shields held strong. The Iroquois broke off as a volley of four plasma torpedoes were launched.

"Fire our last Shiva into their midst," ordered Keyes.

"Yes sir. Five seconds to launch. There is another Covenant ship ahead sir. Getting lots of sensor ghosts from it. Looks like a DAV-class corvette, but is considerably smaller. Might be their version of an ONI prowler."

"A stealth ship? Launch half our remaining Archers, and close the range. Status of MACs?"

"MACs at quarter charge. Launching Archers. Shiva has launched and detonated. One torpedo got through although its integrity is compromised. Launching two Archers to neutralize."

Archer missiles burst out of their pods, two of them rocketing towards the trailing torpedo and detonating, dissipating the plasma, while the rest shot off towards the Covenant stealth ship.

"Its jamming us! It screwed up the Archers' targeting systems. Most of them missed, they'll burn up in the planet's atmosphere; the ones that continued on target were taken out by the point defence. One got through. Sir, the ship doesn't have shields."

"Is that so? Status of MACs?"

"Three minutes. Divert power from MAC two to MAC one."

"Diverting. We can fire in twenty eight seconds, but cannot get target lock. They're screwing up our targeting sensors. Too many sensor ghosts. We'll likely miss."

Keyes cursed. "What are they doing? They're speeding up and turning. Looks like they're running."

"If they're speeding up, they have to make a wider turn and close the distance first. Lieutenant Hall, set a collision course and prepare four Archers. We're ramming that ship. It's smaller than us, we can do it easily and they know it."

"Aye sir. Sounding collision alert."

Alarms rang through the length of the Iroquois, shrill sounding unlike the alarms for General Quarters which possessed more bass, even as its engines flared, power being diverted from non-essential systems to intercept the Covenant ship.

The distance closed. "Collision in seven seconds," called out Hall.

The Covenant ship had almost completed it's turn when the Iroquois smashed into it's side. Heavily damaged, it spun away, it's reactor shutting down while the Iroquois continued on it's course, four Archers arcing away from it and striking the smaller vessel. With it's power now disabled, there was no way to stop the missiles from destroying it.

"Structural integrity at forty two percent. We're leaking atmosphere, and reactor flux is outside of acceptable levels. Reactor meltdown imminent in fourteen minutes. We just burnt out two engine coils. MAC one is online and ready to fire, MAC two is disabled."

"Reduce reactor power to ninety four percent. That should stabilize the reactor. Take us back into the fight."

_**0500 Hours, 18th July 2552…**_

"All Covenant vessels have been destroyed Captain. Admiral Stanforth is ordering us to fall back into formation at the second Lagrange point."

"Acknowledge it. What's the status of the fleet?"

"We have just ten ships remaining sir. Heavy damage on all, except the Leviathan. She had a pretty good time of it."

Keyes shook his head. Forty eight of our ships against eight of theirs and we walk away with barely ten ships. I'm surprised we've even held out this long.

"Sir, Admiral Stanforth's on the line."

"On screen."

Stanforth's grim visage appeared on the Iroquois' display. His uniform was rumpled, but he seemed uninjured unlike Keyes who was bleeding from the side of his head. Keyes saluted.

"Captain change of plans. You're being recalled to Reach by HIGHCOMM immediately. We'll follow later. When you reach, well, Reach, you'll be debriefed at Camp Hathcock by ONI and after that you get to check out your new ship."

"Sir?"

Stanforth smiled mysteriously. "My lips are sealed, but trust me, she's a beauty. See you later Jacob. And remember Article 1."

Keyes nodded. Stanforth was referring to Article 1 of the famous Cole Protocol which stated that any ship retreating from Covenant forces, had to first conduct a randomized slipspace jump to prevent the Covenant from discovering human colonies or worse, Earth, except by accident. It was this veil of secrecy afforded by this Protocol that had allowed the UNSC to hold off the Covenant for as long as it had. It was, in effect, the greatest delaying action ever conducted. Not following this Protocol was synonymous with treason.

"Of course Admiral."

"Ensign Lovell, plot us two randomized slips, away from known Covenant territory, and then set a course for Reach."

"Aye aye sir. Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine powering up. Time to first random slipspace event; T-minus two minutes."

* * *

"Translight engine powered up. We are ready for first random slip. Estimated Time of Arrival at Reach; one month and two days."

Keyes nodded. "Engage."

The high-power cyclic particle accelerators part of the Translight Engine unveiled by Tobias Fleming Shaw and Wallace Fujikawa in April 2291, caused two baryonic klyrons travelling close to the speed of light, to collide producing a highly unstable microscopic black hole with a half life of a nanosecond thanks to their low mass. Normally, it would collapse with a puff of Hawking radiation, but within that nanosecond, with the aid of powerful quantum fields, the black hole was manipulated by the 'Slipspace Drive' into forming a coherent rupture in front of the Iroquois, that led into the non-Euclidean and non-Einsteinian realm of slipstream space. A vortex of blue, emitting high levels of Cherenkov radiation emerged into being, into which the Iroquois accelerated. As soon as it had entered completely, the vortex became unstable and collapsed into itself, disappearing with a dragon's breath of Hawking and Cherenkov radiations that lit up radiation sensors for hundreds of miles around.

Stanforth watched the heavily damaged form of the Iroquois depart. "Safe journey Jacob. See you during Red Flag."

He opened up a report sent to him by the Commander-in-Chief of ONI (CINCONI); Admiral Margaret Orlenda Parangosky. He spluttered in shock when he saw what she had written.

_That bint wants to use _Reach_ as a stepping stone for Red Flag? Is she insane?_

He sobered up when he saw the reason why. Apparently ONI Section One had run the simulations and there was an eighty seven percent probability that Reach would be found by the Covenant within five months.

He sighed. They would have to accelerate the timetable for Red Flag before that happened and begin evacuating Reach and moving all heavy industry out of there, and be ready to evacuate Earth too, just in case, and flee to Eden.

_Damn all you Covenant freaks._

* * *

_**0700 Hours; 20th August, 2552 - UNSCDF Military Calendar; Onboard Halberd-class destroyer UNSC Iroquois under Captain Jacob Keyes; High Orbit; Planet Reach; Epsilon Eridani Star System…**_

Reach was the second planet from its sun and was the fourth largest planet in-system. It was one of three habitable (and inhabited) planets in the Epsilon Eridani Star System.

Reach; humanity's fortress among the stars...

It was one of the first extrasolar planets colonized by humanity, discovered in the early 21st Century. With its lone sun; Epsilon Eridani burning in the void, a scant ten and a half light years distant from Sol, it was located on Earth's metaphorical doorstep. It was generally accepted that if Reach fell, it was only a matter of time before Earth followed suit.

The Iroquois burst out of slipspace above Reach, next to its largest moon; _Csodaszarvas_, its heavily damaged form attracting the attention of the various news affiliated space ships hovering over Reach, as well as several civilian craft, which had to be forcefully escorted away by a pair of Longsword fighters each, courtesy of the UNSC Trafalgar, the three kilometer long supercarrier which was a scant thirty thousand kilometers distant.

Authorization codes were exchanged with Gamma Station, and upon receiving clearance, escorted by two Paris-class frigates, the destroyer made for Anchor 7, one of eighteen ship repair and refit stations orbiting Reach. It docked with military efficiency, and almost instantly, a veritable army of repair drones and technicians swarmed over its hull.

Keyes quickly made his way to the Iroquois' hangar bay, from where he entered a Pelican which quickly made its way to the planet's surface.

Camp Hathcock was a top-level military retreat, similar to Camp Independence. Located in the Highland Mountains, it spread out for a mile on the surface, but contained the majority of its facilities in massive underground bunkers.

Keyes quickly navigated its concrete and Titanium-A corridors and entered what had been nicknamed the 'boardroom'. From here, officials from the Office of Naval Intelligence would debrief prowler captains, SPARTANs and other members of HIGHCOMM. He had no idea, why he had been summoned here of all places; there were plenty of other debriefing rooms at the Camp, although it might have something to do with what Stanforth had told him.

He entered and took his place in front of a panel of spooks.

"You are Commander Jacob Edward Keyes, service number _01928-19912-JK_, recently promoted to Captain by Admiral Hieronymous Michael Stanforth?" asked a stern looking woman with her greying hair pulled back into a bun. The others sat silent, their faces set in stone and their eyes boring into him. He mentally rolled his eyes at their obvious attempts at intimidation.

Everything in this room was set up for PsyOps; from the placement of the podium the spooks sat on in relation to his simple table and chair, to the massive ONI symbol in front of him. He idly wondered what they were compensating for.

"Yes I am."

"Very well. We can begin. First of all, congratulations upon your promotion and your success in battle against the Covenant, Captain," said a man. His expression and manner was jovial.

_So it's the Good Cop-Bad Cop routine then huh?_

"Captain Keyes, our purpose here is to debrief you on an upcoming mission called Operation Red Flag…"

* * *

"...For the purposes of this Operation, we are assigning you a new ship called the UNSC Pillar of Autumn."

Keyes cocked his head. That was quite a mouthful.

"It is an experimental prototype warship, and for now, the flagship of the UNSC fleet."

Okay, now he was really interested, especially with the 'for now' part.

"It is quite an honour you are being awarded Captain. Do not let us down. Many feel Operation Red Flag is, at the risk of sounding clichéd; our last, best hope for peace.

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

→ Yeah, I went there. I quoted _Babylon 5_.

→ Sue me.

→ Or rather, don't.

→ I don't want a court case on my butt. I have enough problems as it is.

→ No, I do not own _Babylon 5_.

→ Chapter 3 of _Operation Red Flag_ will be posted by next week.

→** P.S:** I told you guys that chapter length would increase in later chapters. Did I not tell you? Huh? Bet you guys are sad y'all didn't believe me.

→ **P.P.S:** Review, Favourite and Follow guys. Seriously. It's my oxygen and haemoglobin…...Yes, I am a nerd, I know. Problem? I thought not.

→ C u l8r.

* * *

_**Signing off for now,**_

_**~ Apex113**_

* * *

**DATE COMPLETED:** 09/04/2015

**DATE REVISED: **12/04/2015

**TIME COMPLETED:** 09:32:01

**TIME REVISED:** 21:32:45

**WORD COUNT:** 6107 words


	3. Chapter III: The Pillar of Autumn

**SUMMARY**

A butterfly flaps its wings in China, and a hurricane hits New Mexico. Small changes in the past, can produce massive divergences in the present. Planet Reach, for now, is spared. Humanity strikes back. Operation Red Flag goes forth. The die is cast. The wings flapped. And nothing is ever again, the same.

* * *

**DISCLAIMER**

→ This author does not own the Halo franchisee. It is the property of 343 Industries.

→ This story is meant purely as a work of art. Any resemblance to a person, alive or dead, is purely coincidental and unintentional.

→ This author makes no profit from the publishing of this story on this site.

→ Yes, this has been inspired by **Havoc-Legionnaire**'s_ Halo: The Art of War_; but while the beginning is similar - Operation Red Flag _is_ canon after all; it just wasn't carried out - the end is not. I have plans, oh so many, many plans. *Cackles*

→ No, there is no Spearhead SPARTAN III team in this story. This is going to be a bit more realistic, although a bit less funny. Spearhead team, while they take away the realism, they do make me laugh.

→ Havoc-Legionnaire made one prominent mistake in _Halo: The Art of War_ and that was the presence of SPARTAN IVs. This is because the first class of SPARTAN IVs (145 SPARTANs) went active on January 7th, _2553_, while _Art of War_ took place in _2552_.

* * *

"_A dozen Covenant superior Battleships against a single Halcyon-class cruiser. Given those odds, I'm content with three...make that four kills."_

– UNSC Smart AI Serial Number CTN 0452-9 'Cortana', during the Battle of Installation 04 –

* * *

**CHAPTER III: The Pillar of Autumn**

_**1130 Hours; 25th August, 2552 - UNSCDF Military Calendar; Onboard ONI Shuttlecraft Tricarnaq ferrying Captain Jacob Keyes; UNSC Naval Mothball Shipyard, Extremely High Orbit; Planet Reach; Epsilon Eridani Star System…**_

The shuttlecraft Tricarnaq, registered to the Office of Naval Intelligence, made its way through the UNSC Mothball Yard orbiting Reach. It was located far away from the traditional shipping lanes, and few outside of the military had ever laid eyes on it.

Ensconced within, laid out in neat concentric circles, was a sea of ships centuries old. They were ships that the Navy had had no need of at the time of their retirement and decommissioning, but did not wish to scrap in case they were needed in the future. That forethought was now paying off.

From the centuries old Odyssey-class colony ships, the first of which had colonised Reach, retrofitted for military duty ages ago, to the newer Daedalus-class heavy cruisers that had been retired just a decade before the Covenant war; taking a trip through the yard, was akin to taking a trip through Earth's centuries old, proud spacefaring naval history. Many ships from the United Rebel Front's ever-elusive Navy could claim to have originated from this very yard.

Not so long ago, even with the occasional thefts by Insurrectionists, the Yard had been even bigger, containing thrice as many ships, but as the war became increasingly desperate, capable ships had been refitted and sent into battle, while the rest were scrapped for parts, freeing up docking spaces for constructing newer, more capable warships.

Jacob Keyes stood on the observation deck of the Tricarnaq as it wove its way through the armies of fleet tenders, and other shuttlecraft. As was tradition, a Captain would observe his new command thoroughly from the outside first, before stepping aboard and taking command.

As the Pillar of Autumn came into view, with massive numbers of shuttlecraft and technicians and engineers in EVA suits along its length and breadth, he noted that it looked exactly like a Halcyon-class cruiser. Those cruisers had been retired at the start of the war. They were the butt of countless jokes in the Navy for they were slow and ungainly and were hideously underpowered. The only thing they were known for, was their durability. Halcyons fighting the Covenant, were known to have continued to be combat capable even after losing ninety percent of their armour and hull integrity. 'Probably why it was chosen,' he mused thoughtfully.

As the shuttlecraft moved closer, he saw that the similarities ended at the shape of its hull. The cruiser's secondary MAC appeared to have been stripped out, and the primary one had been downsized. In addition, along with the traditional dual mounted 50mm point defence guns, odd single gun mounts were present too. The normal Archer missile pods were present, but between them were scores of tinier missile pods looking like seriously downsized Archer pods. They didn't even appear to be able to hold a single Archer missile, let alone the twelve normally in a pod. There were additional emergency thrusters fitted on, and the maneuvering thrusters had much thicker cowls. The armour also, was different. It shone in the light of the distant sun, much like Covenant hull armour, and was brown in colour rather than the normal Vanadium and Titanium-A alloy's grey. He idly wondered why ONI couldn't have told him more than - '_Hey, congrats on your victory and promotion! Bravo! You're a hero! Here's a brand spanking new prototype ship. You should be honoured. Now get out so we can brief other people more important than you.'_

Okay, that wasn't exactly what they said, but that was pretty much the gist of it. He hoped they hadn't dropped the ball and had someone onboard to explain everything to him as they said they would, because a Commanding Officer knowing nothing about his ship, other than it being new and powerful, wouldn't exactly instil confidence in his subordinates.

Then he noticed the most interesting thing. There were what looked like cannons, along all the sides of the ship - port, starboard, top and bottom - only about eight of them on each side. The UNSC had experimented with mounting 'mini' MACs along the sides of a warship for a devastating broadside capability before, but the idea had failed due to the massive amounts of space that would be required to store the rounds, the massive reloading mechanisms, and a general lack of power.

"Are those MACs?" he asked of his companion, Colonel George Yang of Section Three. Yang followed his gaze, before chuckling. "Have you heard of the 320mm Zeus-class plasma cannon?"

Keyes' eyes widened. "Aren't those mounted on the Rhino tank? The M145D variant?"

Yang grinned. "Right in one. Those as you know, were first deployed in 2531 on Harvest. We've since been able to make it more power efficient and oversize it enough to mount it on a spaceship."

Keyes' eyes widened in awe.

"So that teeny-tiny fly of a MAC at the front of my ship is actually a big and honking elephant of a PAC?"

"I'm afraid not." At Keyes' disappointed look Yang smirked. "Fear not Captain, we've got plenty of other toys for you."

* * *

The shuttlecraft landed in the Autumn's cavernous hangar bay. "Now, as you know, the Autumn is a prototype. If she does well in battle, we'll make the 'Autumn package' standard for all UNSC cruisers. Now, previously, all the ship had was a new reactor type and new MAC design. I convinced the top brass to allow my people to mount other, more, shall we say; _sensitive _technology. And I don't mean just the 'classified' type of sensitive, but also the 'if it goes wrong, it blows up' kind of sensitive."

Keyes blanched.

"Don't worry," assured Yang. "I was just exaggerating. Mostly."

Keyes wasn't reassured.

"Let's go check this baby out, shall we?"

Yang grinned and made his way towards the cargo elevator. They waited as the elevator made it's way towards the back of the ship, crammed in with varied dangerous munitions in wooden crates all around them. From the looks of it, the Marines had gotten to them before the cargomen for they were marked with various labels that were definitely against regulations.

He grimaced at the drawing on a box of what were apparently grenades, that depicted an Elite bending over, and a Marine shoving a grenade up its butt. The next drawing in the series showed what happened when the grenade went off. It wasn't a pretty sight. Whoever drew it, was a damn good artist, and had a vivid imagination. Much too vivid.

Yang saw it too, and snickered before turning towards him with a grin. "As you know, in the twenty third and twenty fourth centuries, the UNSC experimented with ship borne energy weapons like plasma cannons, electron guns and spinal lasers. They were, obviously, a massive failure. They were ridiculously short-ranged and required a massive amount of power which wasn't feasible outside the massive underground laboratories that Section III works in. So we hit a dead end and pioneered the MACs. We remained stuck for nearly two centuries, and were ready to give up. The little alien tech we had found in ruins scattered across various planets, was so far ahead of our own, there was no way for us to understand, let alone reverse engineer it. And then the Covenant showed up using primitive versions of the tech we already had scavenged, and worshipping its makers. And so, REAP-X was born."

"Reapix?"

"R-E-A-P-X," corrected Yang. "The Reverse Engineering And Prototyping - Xenotechnology Department of Section III. They're the ones who created this ship, after I successfully petitioned HIGHCOM to allow me to mount that 'sensitive tech' I told you about before."

"Quite a mouthful."

They exited the elevator, and began walking down a corridor, that was narrower than it should be, considering he was on a cruiser.

"Yeah. Any information about them is covered with planets worth of black tape, so don't tell anyone I told you this. They receive literally unlimited funding and are in charge of reverse engineering alien tech, both Covenant and Forerunner - that's what we're calling the Covenant's _gods_ \- and much of the technology aboard this ship, is their decades worth of hard work. This ship could, theoretically go toe to toe with a CAS-class Assault Carrier, which is obviously why HIGHCOM chose her to be Red Flag's vanguard."

"_Unlimited _funding?"

"Out of everything I said, _that's_ what you're nitpicking on?"

"Well, yeah. We're at war. Where does the money come from."

Yang shrugged. "Everywhere. Since the war started, every department in the UNSC, 'donates' three to seven percent of their budget to supplement REAP-X's already considerable one, and if they somehow end up going over-budget, the other departments will shoulder the costs."

Keyes gaped at him.

"Close your mouth, you'll catch flies." Yang laughed at his own joke. "Here we are. Engineering Bay One, containing Powerplant One."

Keyes emerged into a voluminous chamber, three decks high, at the center of which was a massive fusion reactor. It's manifolds into the core were massive, and were suspended on the second deck, as opposed to the first. Behind it, was another reactor, that was half the size of the first.

"There are two Engineering Bays; one here; and one at the front of the ship. We cleared out the secondary cargo storage bay for that, containing Reactor Two."

"Why does it need two?"

"It needs two because your ship is a massive power hog. You need more power than those Mark II ODPs deployed above Earth to function at optimal capacity. The power is distributed like so; Reactor One for life support, communications, navigations, maneuvering thrusters, interior electricals like lights, your ECM screen and the rest. Reactor Two is for weapons, main engines, and the slipspace drive. If any reactor destabilizes and is about to blow? You've got a minute and a half to either shut it down or abandon ship because it will cause one hell of an explosion when combined with the other one."

"How big?"

"If I put it in Denver, and allow it to blow? Say goodbye to everything from Las Vegas to Chicago. If the shockwave and massive earthquakes don't get them, the radioactive fallout will. Of course, that's only if the atmosphere doesn't catch fire first."

"That's...explosive. Do I have any backup reactors?"

"No kidding. And yes, you do. One. The same as your primary reactor. Don't start it up when your main reactors are on, you'll blow yourself skyhigh before you can say 'Covenant'. Anyways, come closer," said Yang beckoning him towards the massive reactor. "Look at the reactor ring."

Keyes squinted through the glow of the reactor. A standard reactor possessed a single reactor ring which emitted an electromagnetic field to maintain reactor containment. The ones in the Autumn however - "There are...three of them?"

"Two of them side by side, encircled by a third, yes. When kickstarted, they boost reactor power by over 300 percent for ten minutes. With both the reactors on, you can boost it by 600 percent for five minutes. After that, you risk damaging the power conduits, so the reactors automatically stabilize. Overriding this function activates the self-destruct."

"What's it use for fuel? I'm assuming it's not the standard Tritium-Deuterium hybrid fusion-type?"

"Negative Captain. Helium-3 sustained hybrid fusion."

Keyes raised his eyebrows. Helium-3 sustained fusion had been first pioneered a century and a half ago by a Doctor Edward Pei. Compared to the standard hybrid fusion of deuterium and tritium, it was massively more efficient and ton for ton, produced thrice as much power." But there was a catch.

"As I recall, ships equipped with He-3 fusion reactors have an unfortunate tendency to blow up."

"Advances in technology, and theoretical understanding render that statement moot. Trust me, this thing won't blow up unless it's told to."

Keyes frowned but accepted that. "Alright. I see no coolant pipes, so I'm assuming that you have some new, prototype gizmo for that and it is not a design oversight."

"There aren't any coolant pipes because it doesn't need coolant. It uses a laser-induced optical slurry of ions chilled to near-absolute zero to neutralize any and all waste heat. Essentially, the reactor cools itself, maintaining a constant average temperature."

Keyes whistled. With the extra reactor power, and with no worries of it overheating, he would have massively reduced MAC charging times, and the engines too would be much more powerful. He would have to rethink his strategies, to take into consideration a heavy cruiser with the speed and agility of a frigate.

"What are its MAC charging times?"

"We've changed the MAC design. This ship has the latest _Mark II Light Coil: 56A2D4 _MAC gun."

"I'm a soldier. Not an engineer. That means absolutely nothing to me."

"It can fire three shots every forty five seconds, or one shot every fifteen seconds. There is a gap of one second between multiple shots. The normal iron and depleted uranium rounds have been encased in tungsten carbide. They work like shredder rounds. Against an unshielded vessel, they'll penetrate the hull, before the shells break apart, increasing the damage done. Against Covenant shields, tungsten carbide disrupts the energy fields, weakening them quickly. At least the infantry level ones we have in our possession do, although it's a pain to make them. We're hoping it will be the same for their ships."

"What the hell did you build this ship to kill? Gods?"

"No. A CAS-class Assault Carrier and its escorts," deadpanned Yang. "It gets better. You have 250 M58 Archer Missile pods, with 26 Archers in each pod. That's a total of 6500 missiles, each with a yield of fifty kilotons each. In the other 50 remaining pods, we have the M71 Electronic Countermeasure Missiles, with thirty two missiles a pod equalling 1600 missiles. For every four Archers you deploy, deploy a single M71 and then we'll see how effective their pulse lasers are." Yang's smile was pure evil.

"What about those mini Archer pods I saw coming in?"

"Those? They aren't Archer pods. They're shield emitters."

Keyes felt his eyebrows rise. "I have shields?"

"Yes. And no. It won't be a shield like the Covenant possess, the emitters for those are at a premium. What you have is more simple. It's just a powerful electromagnetic field that will hopefully repel, but more likely disperse plasma torpedoes out over a larger area, which your new armour can withstand. But like Covenant shields, they need to recharge too. You can't connect them directly to the reactor, so they have capacitors that are charged and then disperse their energy. The Misriah Armoury Factories on Reach are already churning out this stuff like crazy, but for now the only ones in existence are on this ship. You wouldn't believe how many favours I had to pull to get HIGHCOMM to agree to this. When you deploy your 'shields' the capacitors will be drained within twenty one minutes and will take seven minutes to recharge completely. But while they're active, they will be effective against plasma."

"Can I reroute power to the capacitors while the shields are in use to make them last longer?"

"Yes, but I wouldn't recommend it long term. You might burn out the capacitors, or the conduits, and start a flash fire."

Keyes exhaled. "This is one hot, spankin' war machine."

Yang's pager went off, a repeating beep that cycled through every three seconds. He consulted it, and looked grave. "Come on Captain, I'll show you to the bridge and then I gotta rush."

The bridge had been relocated. Unlike other UNSC ships which had their bridges at the edge of their hulls with windows looking out onto space, a design flaw for sure, the Autumn's bridge was at the centre of mass for the entire ship, while the backup reactor had been placed in its place and designated the Tertiary Engineering Bay.

Keyes wasn't sure what to think of it. On one hand, he was glad that someone had finally come to their senses and ensured that a UNSC ship couldn't be taken out in a single shot, but on the other hand, he would miss the feeling of watching space go by, knowing that he wasn't looking at a hologram but seeing it with his own eyes. During battle, blast doors would seal shut over the windows of course, but still.

* * *

"Quite cramped," he noted. "And not the traditional layout."

Yang had left on the same shuttle they came on and was soon out of range of their sensors. Upon his request, the crew of the Iroquois had been transferred to the Autumn except Lieutenant Jaggers who had been replaced with Ensign Lovell. Jaggers was back at Camp Hathcock, paying the price for his insubordination.

"The entire ship is cramped, to make space for the larger hangar and extra reactors and weapons, and crew," said Lieutenant Aki Hikowa, his ever-trustworthy XO. She looked like she hadn't slept for days. But then again, everyone in the UNSC Defense Forces looked like that these days.

"Extra crew?"

"Yes, sir. All the SPARTAN IIs and IIIs and a battalion of ODST's. The Marine Corps will be joining us too, with the 79th Infantry, Combat Team Alpha, Combat Team November, Combat Team Sierra, Combat Team Victor, Fire Team Charlie, Fire Team Zulu, Fifth Platoon, Fourteenth Platoon, and Twenty Second Tactical."

Keyes whistled. "That's what? Two thousand Marines?"

"Almost sir. One and a half thousand to be precise, along with eight hundred ODST's and forty four SPARTANs. Total of two thousand, three hundred and thirty four extra soldiers, in addition to the three hundred strong Marines for anti-boarding operations."

"Almost makes me sorry for the Covvie bastards. What's our Shiva stocks like?"

"Twenty one Shiva's in total. Twenty ship-to-ship missiles and one mounted on a remote controlled longsword."

Keyes nodded satisfied. Mounting a Shiva on a Longsword, and then detonating it in the middle of the Covenant's fighter contingent was a recent tactic being employed by the United Nations Defence Forces. The brainchild of Admiral Stanforth, the Covenant had once lost three hundred Seraphs and Banshees for just thirty one Longsword losses.

Keyes looked critically at his XO. "How long have you gone without sleep, Lieutenant?"

She hesitated. "Three days sir."

Despite himself, Keyes was impressed. _Three days without sleep and still standing? _He wondered how many cups of coffee she had consumed.

"Continue your duties Lieutenant, and finish your shift. And after that, return to your quarters and _sleep_."

"But sir-"

"No buts Aki. Finish your shift and sleep. No overtime. That's an order."

She deflated. "Yes sir."

He turned towards Ensign Lovell. "Any messages from FLEETCOMM?"

"Nothing important sir, although Admiral Stanforth will be arriving in two days."

He nodded. 'Keep me informed."

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

→ This chapter just did not want to come out.

→ I don't particularly like it.

→ But I've been sitting on it for two weeks, so; enough is enuff.

→ C u l8r

* * *

_**Signing off for now;**_

_**~ Apex113**_


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